Intels recent Core i7 CPUs promise plenty of processing power whereby the new Nehalem micro architecture brought some very basic changes. Meanwhile there is already the second pile of i7 CPUs hitting the stores with the 950 and 975 XE. This was reason enough for us to update our benchmark lists and also add the results of the Core i7 940.

NZXT Beta Computer Case ReviewAPH Networks has published a new review on the NZXT Beta Computer Case

Generally, software has usually not been released in a timely fashion; some software may take different lengths of time to be officially released. Take Windows Vista, Half Life 2, or most notably, even Duke Nukem Forever -- as common examples -- especially where the latter has been infamous for indefinite release dates to this very day. One thing that has been common in the software sector is the use of beta testing. Free public betas are a good way to get feedback on a piece work in progress; and to get some "free" publicity for the product itself. This has been especially effective with major productions in the software industry such as the upcoming Windows 7. Meanwhile, for Google services like Gmail, has only been recently taken out of the arguably abused 'beta' status after five long years. Regardless of the length of time it takes, beta software has always been a welcome addition for consumers that wish to test the "next big thing" ahead of time. Anyways, we digress, the reason we are talking about beta is because of a new computer chassis interesting named the "Beta" from gaming chassis manufacturer NZXT. The inspiration behind the NZXT Beta is to design a case "that delivers gamers a chassis designed for tremendous value without sacrificing performance." On the positive side, at least we didn't have to wait indefinitely to get our hands on this case (har har). Nor is enduring a product that normally carries a 'beta' status incorporates expected elements such as unrefined finishing -- or do we? You'll have to read on to find out. Jokes aside, enthusiasts do not normally associate a gaming PC case with the word "value"; and it's hard to blame them. Budget PC cases are not exactly suited for gamers, especially when you want to bring your "1337 gaming rig!!!!111!1!shiftoneoneone" to a LAN party. Regardless of what it is, today we will take a look at a case that is marketed towards a group of so-called 'budget gamers'

Today for review I've got the Sandisk Sansa Connect 4gb Mp3 player from Geeks.com, it's a 'white' box' so there's not original, fancy packaging, butthe product inside is in new condition. The Sansa Connect is a small MP3 player that's easy to use, and it's inexpensive as well, coming in at under $40. The main reason that it's priced so low is not only because it's an older product but because it's limited in functionality. What I mean by this is that normally the Sansa Connect comes with Wi-Fi built into it, the one Ihave for review today does not, the Wi-Fi enabled ones do cost a bit more.There is a little secret though that I can share with you, you can easily enable Wi-Fi functionality with just a firmware upgrade so you get a full functioning Sansa Connect for about $20 less than one that comes with it already enabled. So read on to learn more about this great little MP3 Player from Sandisk

This time in our test lab arrived new member of HAF (High Air Flow) family: 922 model. Design, target user group and idea are the same as for its older brother HAF 932 except this is mid tower chassis. Chassis is made out of steel and plastics with mash front grill. Exterior is black with front mask that is dominated by "silver" Cooler Master logo.

Last year, Silverstone sent me their updated Impervio based replacement to the original Olympia 1kW unit, called the OP1000-E. This unit did pretty well at the time, but carried with it some issues that I felt detracted from the unit's prospects in the market.

Well, here we are in July of 2009, and the platform's been revised again. Now, I get to run the OP1000-P through my house of horrors and see if it comes out in one piece. Let's take a look and see if this one finally breaks the trend of perfectly capable but ultimately bland offerings from Silverstone.

Today we recieved a real heavy weight board on our test bench! Asus sent a sample of their Rampage 2 Extreme motherboard which really seems to be an overclocker board filled with features so you can boost the crap out of your Core i7 boards. We are going to twist and turn it to see what type of results we can get from the board.

Top Apple iPod AlternativesTechReviewSource.com takes a look at the top iPod alternatives

Not everyone wants to have an Apple iPod and we understand that. There are some features that the iPod-line doesn't have, like an FM receiver. Other common faults with the iPod is its iTunes software, which has been said to be clunky and not user friendly by some. We've come up with some of the best iPod alternatives out there right now, some cheaper and some more expensive then the Apple iPod. Many of them come with their own unique features and advantages, be sure to check them all out.

In order to achieve that level of performance most of us strive for in our builds comes with purchasing the next best processor or motherboard, and the latest and greatest in the battle among video cards. We get extreme CPU and motherboard combinations, we line up as many graphics cards in our system as the board will allow, all in the name of scorching performance. Many times, however, we overlook what the life blood of the system is and select one based on price rather than needs. Without a good, reliable power supply, even the most awe inspiring rig could mean nothing. The Thermaltake Tough Power 850 XT packs the power to manage just about any system. The Thermaltake Tough Power 850 XT features modular cabling and extreme caliber power output. The rugged build case houses the high quality construction of this modular power supply with full certifications for SLI and CrossFireX for extreme gaming. The Thermaltake Tough Power 850 also features excellent cooling to maintain stability under high loads.

Overclocking the Dominator GT memory was tricky. I could get close to 2000MHz, however I had to really loosen the timings to the point that the bandwidth suffered a lot. It would not run anything stable at less than 9-9-9-22 timings and that was a big jump from the stock settings. So I took a different approach and left the timings at 6-6-6-18, pushing the reference clock up a little at a time until I could not boot and pass memtest86+ without any errors. I was at a wall at 215MHz above the reference clock even when I pushed the voltage of the Dominator GT set up a bit. When I ran some tests, it was stable and performed a lot better than when the timings were loosened with the higher speed. So for the overclocking tests, I will be running the Dominator GT set at 1720MHz with latencies of 6-6-6-18.

A couple of weeks ago we started playing with the Samsung S3C29RBB01 controller that is found in the Corsair Performance Series and Samsung PB22-J solid state drives. We were impressed with the Corsair P256’s cost per gigabyte and found that it was a very good performer as well. The drive was able to win a couple of our benchmark tests and more surprisingly they were tasks that you would use on a daily basis, something that surprised us since our first generation Samsung drive we reviewed was heavily optimized for server orientated tasks.

One area that we just glanced over in our review was Samsung’s Self-Healing feature. Today we are going to talk about this exclusive technology that is built right into the drive. Let’s get right along with it and have a detailed look at Self-Healing to see what it does and why it is such a hot topic.

The graphics card market is pretty much a two man slugfest at the moment. ATI and NVIDIA trade blows at irregular intervals in a brutal game of strategy. The GeForce GTX 275 was a punch that NVIDIA held in reserve, just waiting for ATI to release their HD4890 card. When launch day came for ATI, lo and behold, NVIDIA had the GTX 275 up their sleeve, ready for production. Essentially, the GTX 275 combines the GPU of the GTX 285 with the memory architecture of the GTX 275 with performance and pricing that neatly slots between the two.

MSI is an established player in the graphics card market, and their take on the GTX 275 pulls no punches. They put together a unique design, featuring twin PWM fans and a 5-heatpipe cooler, for their N275GTX Twin Frozr OC Edition, and one look should tell you that they are serious about performance. Benchmark Reviews is pleased to offer you a detailed, fact-filled look at one of the products at the heart of the sweet spot for gaming graphics.

The LAN party. These gatherings of gamers and geeks can be big or small, but one thing is always a constant, and that is the need to portage you computer from its permanent resting place at your home to some house or hall in your vicinity. The few LAN parties I’ve attended have demonstrated to me the importance of having a small, portable computer that can house a large collection of high performance hardware. NZXT also recognized this as a benefit, and their latest case may just fit those requirements.

We are here in Hangzhou, China in the technology and development area (or HEDA as it’s known officially) at the moment visiting the Runcore office to get a hands-on look at its range of Pro IV SSD drives that will launch later today and go on sale very soon.

We spent some time exclusively testing the new Runcore Pro IV, specifically the 1.8-inch Micro SATA 128GB. We compared the performance of this new SSD against a standard notebook HDD in two identical Lenovo X301 laptops. We confirmed that no funny business was going on and that both systems were identical in terms of setup, clock speeds and so on.

Today we will have a look at a unit from their ultimate performance range, the UCP 900W. The UCP (Ultimate Circuit Protection) series is designed to offer the best possible electrical performance and reliability to the most demanding of users. Today we will find out just how good the unit is.

Join Dan here at TechwareLabs as we take a look at one of the best tactical flashlights on the market today. The Clicky Custom, by Ra can put out up to 170 lumens, has four brightness levels, and is 100% customizable. Will this light be the GoTo Gadget for when the SHTF? Or will it be another thing that sits on our desk collecting dust? Read on to see if the Ra Clicky Custom can hold up to the test...

Remember when UV first became popular? I must have spent my entire McDo nald's salary tricking out my case with every UV light I could get my hands on. My PC glowed like a street racer. It was in its own movie. I eventually moved out of the UV phase and into the LED era, where I remain even today. It seems a little more conserved to me. But UV is still popular, and today's review is living proof. But this fan is much more than just a glow recipient.

If you are like me, then having an awsome sound system on our computers is an absolute need. We have gone way beyond the, any old speakers will do for us. Not since our movies, music, and our games are taking advantage of 5.1 or even 7.1 surround sound. Any one can have loud music, gaming, or movie playing, but is it clear? Does it distort while the volume is at its absolute loudest? We need speakers that are crystal clear, that can re-produce accurate tones through out the full spectrum of sounds we are dealing with.

Eagle Tech has brought to us a couple sets of speakers, now these speakers are not 5.1/7.1 surround sound but only a 2.1 speakers. 2.1 speakers only have a sub and a right and left channel. Do not let the 2.1 discourage you from the use of these speakers. What I have found out, that these speakers are flexable enough for those of us who need that extra 2 channels to complete our 7.1 surround sound expereince., or for those who need that crystal clear sound from normal stereo.